A Multi-Bit ECRAM-Based Analog Neuromorphic System With High-Precision Current Readout Achieving 97.3% Inference Accuracy.

Journal: IEEE transactions on biomedical circuits and systems
Published Date:

Abstract

This article proposes an analog neuromorphic system that enhances symmetry, linearity, and endurance by using a high-precision current readout circuit for multi-bit nonvolatile electro-chemical random-access memory (ECRAM). For on-chip training and inference, the system uses activation modules and matrix processing units to manage analog update/read paths and perform precise output sensing with feedback-based current scaling on the ECRAM array. The 250nm CMOS neuromorphic chip was tested with a 32 × 32 ECRAM synaptic array, achieving linear and symmetric updates and accurate read operations. The proposed circuit system updates the 32 × 32 ECRAM across 100 levels, maintaining consistent synaptic weights, and operates with an output error rate of up to 2.59% per column. It consumes 5.9 mW of power excluding the ECRAM array and achieves 97.3% inference accuracy on the MNIST dataset, close to the software-confirmed 97.78%, with only the final layer (64 × 10) mapped to the ECRAM.

Authors

  • Minseong Um
  • Minil Kang
  • Kyeongho Eom
  • Hyunjeong Kwak
  • Kyungmi Noh
  • Jimin Lee
    Department of Nuclear Engineering, Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology, Ulsan, Republic of Korea.
  • Jeonghoon Son
  • Jiseok Kwon
  • Seyoung Kim
    IBM T. J. Watson Research Center, Yorktown Heights, NY, USA.
  • Hyung-Min Lee